Yay! Thank you so much, all of you, for all the lovely reviews! I can't tell you how much that means to me… and how it motivates me to continue this. *passes out cookies* Sorry this chapter took a while to do, I wanted to make sure it was right, and I was kinda busy with the never ending hysteria called life.

Phew… here it is, finally! Soo, this is what you've been asking for and I've been dying to write. Finally! Got! Here! I loved this scene in the game… so much. Made me so happy. Thank you Square Enix. Thank you. (And as we all know… yes… I don't own FFX-2, all that belongs to Square Enix. Alright! Now that that's over with…)

As for this fic itself… I've debated over if it should end here, or continue on a bit. Well, I've decided in the latter… but it MAY not be too interesting, so we'll see how it goes?

I know Square intended the story to end where it did, and I probably shouldn't even be writing more because there's nothing more to write, but I feel the need to. Soo, we'll see how it goes. It probably won't be anything too long, but… just a look at the characters one last time. Because I love the FFX /FFX-2 story too darn much. X_x

But anyway, if it doesn't look like it's well liked, I'll just cut it out and end it here. Got a plot in mind, nothing as disasteriffic (as Rikku would put it) as Sin or Vegnagun, but just something that gives me an excuse to write more. Whee! XD

I just hope I don't ruin the story or make it dull.

If you think strongly I should or shouldn't continue, please say so in your comments… that'll be the deciding factor in this story's fate. I won't continue if nobody is interested in reading more. Sooo…

(And yes, I know I haven't included any of the Perfect Ending details yet… that'll be in chapter 4, most likely. Sorry!! )

Pleeease! Comments! They help so much!

Anyhow, here it is, Chapter 3 and Beyond!

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Chapter 3

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How or when he began to start feeling conscious again, he didn't know. It felt as if stepping out of a dream, and back into the waking world. Or perhaps, that was really what had happened.

One moment he was in a world that seemed, somehow, fake, or dreary, in comparison to the world he had left behind. He'd wished countless times that he could be free of this fake world once more, and return to there.

And then, suddenly, it all seemed real again. The veil lifted, and the world he'd known since he was a child melted away, like it had once before, though less violently. He'd been pulled from the world last time, against his will. This time, it felt like escaping a world he could no longer stand. It felt as though he'd fallen asleep, and a countless amount of time had passed during his sleep.

Then, he awoke. The first thing he was aware of was distant whispers, blurred by the sound of water. Whispers from the small clusters of rainbows he had learned were called Pyreflies. They flowed around him, and as more time passed, he became more aware of them. One passed by his head, and broke the spell completely.

'Pyreflies? Why are there pyreflies?'

The sound of water became more defined. The pyreflies disappeared into the darkness, and then light began to spread into his eyes. Around him he could feel the water, warm and very real. More light filtered through the darkness, and soon all he could see was the bottom of the sandy ocean bottom.

'Zanarkand doesn't have any oceans this shallow.' The thought spoke to him, dully moving through his head as his mind began to too, awake.

Stretching, he found that he could move his body, and the resistance that he felt was truly the familiar feel of water. So it was not just a figment of his imagination. But was it real, or still the endless dream?

Looking around him, he could see endless, clear blue ocean. Below it, in an equally endless horizon, was a sandy bottom, white with speckled rocks carrying various marine life. The rocks seemed oddly familiar. As if he'd been there before, once. Memories faded out of the dream and returned to him, and then it began to make more sense.

By this time, he was fully aware of everything around him. The dream that he had been in was drifting away, as if it had been nothing more then a dream. He found himself leaving it behind, and all of his focus went to his surroundings.

Looking up, he saw the familiar sight of sunlight hitting the ocean's surface. Somehow it seemed familiar. The sky was clear and blue, with pure white clouds drifting across it. Pushing himself up towards it, the end of the dream and the waking began to take a hold on him.

'It can't be…' He thought, though a feeling inside of him reassured him that it was. Pushing up faster, he finally broke the surface of the water with a gasp.

The air was sweet and fresh, filled with the friendly taste of the ocean and tangy scent of tropical plants nearby. Gulls cried out as they sailed overhead, calling to each other as if wondering where the strange person had come from so suddenly.

Treading in the water, he slowly turned around to face where he could hear the gulls. For a moment, everything inside of him came to a hold. It felt almost as if his heart had skipped a beat and time had stood still.

Filled with doubt but also with an almost giddy happiness, he put his fingers to his lips and let a shrill whistle echo over the water and towards the island. There was no sign of anyone on the beach, nor any sound of a reply. He was somewhat disappointed not to hear an answer, but realized that he was quite far away from the island.

Taking in a deep breath to calm his racing mind, he floated out onto his back, and stared up at the sky above him. It was all the same as he remembered. The sky, the sounds, the island, even the cry of the gulls. He was truly back. Back in the Spira he'd felt was more home to him then his Spira.

Enjoying the fresh air and the warm sun, he nearly felt content to just lay in the water for the rest of time. But that was too much like the dream, he realized, and before the idea could come back he pushed it away. He did not want to go back there.

A memory surfaced at the thought and he remembered the very words Auron had spoke to him once. "Outside the dream world, life can be harsh- even cruel. But it is life."

Ever since he had gone back to the dream world, his mind had been on this 'life'. This real world. Had he ever been part of it, or had he simply been a shadow? It had all seemed real enough at the time. It felt real enough now.

'But how did I get back?'

Not able to begin to phantom how it could have transpired, he pushed the question away and decided it was better to just accept it then to worry. He was back in Spira, and he was in Besaid. That was all that mattered to him at the present.

Well, not quite all that mattered.

Was she still here? Or was this some other time, some other dream of Spira? Was it the same one he remembered? Perhaps they had forgotten him. Perhaps they had all died.

Pushing himself up again, he began to swim towards the beach. He certainly wasn't going to find any of those answers wading around in the ocean all day.

Finally reaching the beach, he stood up and walked towards the shallower part. He still couldn't see anyone around. In fact, it looked almost as if it was deserted. Not even the Aurochs were out practicing on the beach, though it was certainly a fine day for it. Just like the day when he'd first arrived in Spira. The day he'd left the dream and been thrown into a chain of events he never would have imagined possible. A chain of events that led him to upsetting the very way of Spira, and in the end, saving it, with the help of those he changed with his strange ideas. The day he'd met her, and everything stopped making sense.

Shaking the thoughts away he wondered what it was he should do next. He could go up to Besaid itself, though that might alarm everyone who'd seen him before.

'Never mind that. I'll just go anyway and surprise everyone.' He thought with a smile, then heard a funny roaring in the distance. 'Fiends?' He thought for a moment, then listened closer. The noise was above him, though… it also sounded behind. 'No… machina.'

Turning around, he searched the horizon, to find nothing but gulls. Frowning, he looked up into the air and was greeted by a strange sight. A huge machina was flying through the air down towards the water. As it got closer, he realized that the design was probably some kind of airship, though it wasn't anything like he'd seen before. Nor anything like the airship he'd actually ridden on.

'It's coming awfully fast…'

As the thought formed, the airship began to level out, but not by much. As it came roaring closer, he realized that it was not going to land in the deep water, but, in fact, on the shallows he stood in. But somehow he doubted it was going to hit him, and something inside of him told him that whoever was on the airship, was probably someone he knew.

The airship bounced off the water with a roar of water, and he barely missed being swept off his feet by the waves. 'Whoever's flying that thing is nuts!' He thought as he just managed to avoid being run over by one of the huge engines.

When it had finally stopped bouncing and was settling itself on the water, it turned and the engines began to shut off. Before the airship had even stopped moving however, he could hear the ramp underneath it lower. Turning, he looked up to see who was in such a hurry to get off the ship.

The airship speeded along through the air, and Besaid loomed larger and larger on the horizon. Yuna stayed on the deck while Paine and Rikku headed for the elevator. She was enjoying the wind too much to leave quite yet. It was so beautiful up so far in the sky, with the horizon spreading out in all directions and the clouds looming above.

'I guess this will be the last time I'm on the ship for a while. I'm looking forward to the peace and quiet, but I sure will miss this.' Closing her eyes, she drew in a deep breath and turned away to walk after her friends.

Somewhere, a whistle echoed through her mind. Her eyes snapped open and she looked around wildly. Paine and Rikku stopped and frowned, looking at her in confusion.

'That was real, I know it was!'

Spinning around, she ran to the edge of the airship, resulting in a horrified gasp from Rikku.

"Are you trying to fall off??" Her cousin shouted almost hysterically, unsure of Yuna's new antics.

Looking down towards Besaid, Yuna squinted. Though it was still far away, she could begin to make out the details of the beach and the forests. The whistle had been down there, she knew it somehow inside of her.

"Yunie?" Rikku asked, coming up beside her. "Are you alr-"

Yuna spotted something on the beach that caught her eye. Letting out a wordless yell she couldn't keep in, she turned and ran right past Rikku, and nearly ran into a bewildered Paine.

"Yunie?! What did you see! Yunie?" Rikku called after her, in close pursuit. Yuna didn't even slow down, her legs seeming to have a mind of her own. She ran into the elevator, and waited most impatiently as it began to lower down to the lowest level.

"Yuna? What's wrong?" Paine called down, but by that time the elevator had gone out of view and the two of them were forced to wait for it to come back up.

Barely keeping herself from jumping up and down as the elevator went down, painfully slow, she felt the airship hit the water and begin to slow down with a rumble. Her heart was beating so fast, she could barely remember to breathe. So many thoughts were rushing through her mind, but only one was important anymore.

Just then the doors opened and she smacked the switch that released the ramp on her way by. Not waiting for it to lower down completely or for the airship to even stop, she bounded out onto the ramp and into the fresh air.

Below her was the familiar white beach and the ocean, but she couldn't see it. All she could see was him. At that moment, he turned and looked up towards her, and she couldn't wait any longer.

Dashing down the ramp she slid to the end, and then jumped down into the water without so much as a thought about the distance. She hit the ground hard but she didn't even notice. Before she had even regained her balance from the long fall, her legs were pushing her up and forward as fast as they could. Running towards him she couldn't keep the sobs out of her voice as the world seemed to fall apart around her and nothing seemed sane anymore.

For an instant it all reminded her of two years ago, when she had ran to him in a less joyful manner. She'd fallen right through him, and for a moment, she wondered if it would happen all over again.

Reaching out to him she saw him smile at her, and all the cares of the world left as she finally crossed the last distance between them. His arms held out to catch her, she felt all the pain and unhappiness disappear as he caught her and held her tight.

She hadn't fallen through him. Tears threatened to flood her eyes and blur everything out of sight.

Hugging him just as tightly back she let go of even trying to think. She could feel him, she could feel the warmth again. She felt so happy, happier then she could recall being for a long time. As the moment stretched on, she began to calm down. The near hysterical happiness she had felt was being replaced by a less intense, yet no less happier, emotion. Now the other parts of her mind were able to think again, and a question she could not avoid asking surfaced.

Despite everything that her senses were telling her, she still did not dare to dream. He felt real, but was he? Slowly she opened her eyes, and looked down at the beach behind him.

"…Are you real?" She asked, unable to drive the hesitation, fear, and utter amazement from her voice. So many emotions were now swirling through her head at a unstoppable speed. Was this just an illusion? Was it just a dream?

"I think so." His voice was just the same as she remembered. Her heart leapt to hear it, and another voice in her mind was silenced against the fear that he was not real. He certainly sounded real enough. Just as real as it had sounded two years ago.

Slowly, and with some hesitation, she let go of her tight embrace and pulled back to look at him. Looking at him for a long moment, she tried to see if she could tell if he was truly real or not. Then she chided herself silently, knowing she'd probably never be able to tell if he was or not. All that mattered was he was there. That he was back.

"Do I pass?" He asked, looking somewhat worried though the question made her smile. All she could do was nod in reply, and stare up at the eyes she'd never thought she'd see again.

Another moment passed, and she tilted her head and smiled even more. Everything in her mind was beginning to calm down, and the reality of the whole thing floated through her mind happily. It wasn't a dream. It didn't feel anything like a dream, and she could feel him. He wasn't disappearing.

She hadn't fallen through him.

"You're back." Yuna spoke softly, but the joy and relief in her voice couldn't have been masked even if she wanted to. She felt like crying, though this time it would have been for sheer relief and happiness. She'd wanted to find him, but she'd never expected it would have been this easy. To come home to Besaid and find him waiting. It was like a dream, but she knew in her heart it was real.

"I am back." Tidus seemed to be trying to get the idea through his head as well, though he hugged her again and it seemed to get rid of any doubts he still had. "I'm home."

The words made her smile even more. Hugging him back, she felt the hope she had always hold inside vanish. No, she didn't need hope anymore. What she had hoped for had come true.

"Welcome home." She whispered, and somewhere behind her she heard Paine and Rikku begin to descend the ramp of the airship. But she didn't turn to look, or even feel the want to. All she wanted was to stay right where she was, and never let the moment end. She had been looking forward to coming home, though she had always felt that she would be going back to the lonely life she had lived before Rikku had dragged her into the Gullwings. Now it was all behind her, and the home she'd always wanted was coming true.

"Yes, home." Smiling she hugged him tighter. Unspoken words passed between them and he kissed her softly, but the moment was broken when the air was suddenly filled with a familiar voice.

"Hey, get a room you two!" Wakka shouted from the beach, though his voice was filled with good humor and happiness. Yuna was somewhat startled as she pulled away from Tidus to look over to the beach, and felt only slightly embarrassed as she realized the whole village was watching them, cheering and yelling as they did. But the feeling soon passed away as she realized it didn't matter what they thought, and that most of them seemed rather happy that she had found what she'd been looking for. Though judging the recent events, it was more as if he'd found her.

"Waassup?" Wakka waved, grinning as the Aurochs beside him waved and cheered louder.

"Who asked you to watch, Wakka?" Tidus called right back at him with, though he was grinning as he said it. Wakka tried to look innocent, then laughed and looked to Lulu who stood nearby. She gave a small smile in their direction and then looked back down to Vidina's sleeping form.

"Hiya!" Shouted Rikku from somewhere on the ramp, but neither of the two turned to look. Yuna felt far away from everything else, and wasn't quite ready to go back there yet.

Tidus looked back down and smiled at Yuna, then grabbed her hand and began to run towards the beach, dragging her along with him. She didn't resist and kept up with his pace, smiling up into the sun as she realized that everything was quite real, and not a dream. Everything she wanted had come true, by some miracle.

'No, not a miracle.' She thought, and somewhere, she could feel the mysterious smile of the Fayth.

'Thank you. Thank you so much.'

Laughing she ran faster and pulled her along with him, resulting in a surprised look and a near fall from Tidus. She was so happy, she couldn't keep the energy out of her. She just wanted to run forever, with him at her side.

"You know, you've changed!" He managed to say, as he struggled to keep up with her, looking somewhat surprised, though also happy.

"Well, you've missed a few things." She grinned, the wind batting her hair in and out of her face as they ran closer to the beach.

"I wanna hear everything!" He announced with another of his grins, and all she could do was smile in return. There was so much to tell him, so much she wanted to say at once. But as they neared the crowd and Rikku dashed down the ramp to follow them, she knew it would be some time before she was able to talk with him alone. Still, she knew she would have plenty of time to tell him.

He was back. Somehow, despite all the impossibilities, and the doubts, he'd come back. The Fayth had done what they had hinted at, and the horrible memories of the parting between them no longer mattered. The memories would always be there, but now it was time for new ones.

He was back.

"So, where did you spring from, ya?" Wakka asked, slapping Tidus on the shoulder with a grin. "We heard the airship, but we didn't expect to find you too!"

Tidus grinned, though all he could do was shrug. "I don't know. I just woke up, and here I was, like nothing ever happened."

"Well, just the same, it's great that you're back, ya! Yuna told us about the sphere, but we weren't sure that it was you. Guess we were wrong!" He laughed again, and looked over to Lulu who gave a quiet smile.

Yuna stood next to Tidus, still holding his hand tightly, afraid that if she let go he'd disappear again. She knew that Wakka was referring to Shuyin, but that was only because she hadn't had the chance to relate the story to anyone yet. They could think what they liked for now, she'd tell them later. She didn't want to spoil the moment with memories of the sad fate of the lovers. There'd be plenty of time for stories later.

"Hiya!" Rikku shouted again, running up through the waves and onto the beach. Paine followed behind her, though she didn't run and seemed as calm as ever. Though, Yuna could see what looked like a smile on the warrior's face.

Tidus turned around to face the blur of yellow that was now bouncing up and down excitedly. "Where have you been? And how the heck did you get back?"

"I really… have no idea." Tidus shook his head, with another shrug of his shoulders.

"That's not an answer!" Rikku sighed in disappointment, but still seemed quite cheerful. "Fine, if you want to be elusive, go ahead! I'll just pry the answer out of Yunie later."

Now everyone was crowding around the two of them, asking questions and calling greetings. Yuna began to feel a bit overwhelmed, realizing it was not unlike the day she'd defeated Sin and all of Spira wanted to thank her personally. Though the news of Vegnagun hadn't really been broad-casted out yet, it seemed news traveled fast. No doubt thanks to Shinra's commspheres.

"So, you saved the world again, huh?" Tidus asked, smiling down at her.

"Yeah! We did! You should have been there, it was loads of fun!" Rikku chattered energetically, punching the air.

"Fun wasn't the word that came to my mind." Paine sighed, stopping behind Rikku and shaking her head.

"Well, it worked out that way. We didn't start off trying to." Yuna looked down at the beach, slightly embarrassed.

"I really have missed a lot." Tidus shook his head, looking around the group and waving to the Aurochs.

"Don't feel bad, after all, you were gone two years."

"Two years?" Tidus seemed somewhat surprised, looking back down at her. "But… It didn't feel like that. I remember being in Zanarkand again, but not for very long. Then I just woke up and I was here."

Yuna smiled softly and gripped his hand tighter. "I'm glad."

"So, you did find him." Lulu stepped forward, smiling kindly at Yuna, and giving Tidus a nod.

"Hey, Lulu." Tidus grinned, waving a little in the air, then stopping short when he saw what she held in her arms.

"Woah! Lulu?" He blinked, looking from the baby to Wakka.

"I'd like to introduce you to my son, Vidina, ya?" Wakka grinned proudly, and put an arm around Lulu.

"Congratulations! When did this happen?"

"We got married a year or so after the Calm began." Lulu explained, smiling and gently rocking Vidina in her arms. "Vidina was born only a few days ago."

"Well, everything has sure changed a lot, not just you, Yuna." Yuna looked up at Tidus and saw that he looked almost sad. Sad perhaps that he'd missed so much and been gone in the first place. Unable to find words to say, she just leaned her head on his shoulder and shut her eyes. The voices fell out of hearing and all she felt was his hand in hers. She never thought she could be this happy, so freely. Before she had always had the threat of Sin looming in her mind, but now…

"Let's go back to the village, then we can all sit down and have a nice long talk." Lulu's voice broke through as Yuna reopened her eyes to see everyone slowly beginning to head towards the path. "Besides, we've prepared a sort of welcome home celebration for you, Yuna. It'd be a shame to let it go to waste while we stand here in the sun."

"Okay!" Yuna nodded, and gripped Tidus's hand tighter. "Wanna come?" She asked, grinning mischievously.

"You bet!"

"Aww, it's so sweet…" Rikku sniffled, and clutched Paine's arm with a happy sigh. Paine shot her a glare and shook Rikku off her arm.

"Stop that. There's no need to get hysterical." Rikku bounced up and down and waved her arms at Paine as if shocked.

"But Yunie's happy! So I'm happy! And everything's happy again! Why can't you be happy?" Paine sighed and shook her head.

"I am happy."

"You're not smiling!"

"You don't have to smile to be happy."

"Yes you do!" Rikku cried, waving her arms around as if to prove an important point.

"No you don't."

"Yes you do!!"

"No, I am not getting into one of these arguments with you. You're on your own, Rikku." Paine shouted, walking quickly after the group who had all but left the beach. Yuna had stopped to watch the two, and was giggling. Looking up at Tidus she saw he was equally amused, though somewhat confused looking on the identity of the warrior.

"That's Paine. She doesn't smile much, but she's really a good person, and a good friend. Her and Rikku helped me though everything that happened."

"Rikku's really changed. Guess these two years have been pretty busy."

"Paine! Don't walk away! Hey! Wait for meee!" Rikku shouted, looking annoyed as she ran after her. Paine refused to turn around and came to a halt in front of Yuna and Tidus.

"So, you're the one Yuna was looking for." Behind her, Rikku started making faces at her, though Paine didn't seem to notice.

"Uh, yeah. I am." Tidus raised an eyebrow, as if trying to figure out what just to think about the woman, and stop himself from smiling at Rikku's antics. Yuna giggled in spite of herself had to cover her mouth to stop from laughing aloud. She just felt so happy all she wanted to do was laugh.

"Are you alright?" Paine asked, frowning.

"I'm fine!" Yuna managed through a fit of giggles, and even Tidus was starting to have a hard time keeping a straight face.

"What? What's going on?" Paine glared, and then spun around to see Rikku in the process of making a horrible face.

"Aheh.. heh.. Hiya Paine!" Rikku grinned innocently, then shot off like a bullet towards the path. "Hey Wakka, Lu, wait for meee!" Paine gave a frustrated groan and ran after her, looking only mildly furious at the girl.

By this time, Yuna was bent over double and having trouble breathing she was laughing so hard. Tidus was laughing too, though his eyes never left Yuna.

"Rikku must be really happy, she's not usually that bouncy." Yuna finally managed, wiping tears of laughter from her eyes.

"It's nice to laugh again." He smiled, stretching and looking up to the sun. "I don't remember laughing in Zanarkand. But, I hardly remember anything about it anymore. It's like it's fading away."

"Like a dream?" Yuna asked, tilting her head as she brushed hair from her eyes.

"Yeah. Like a dream." His voice sounded distant, and for a moment Yuna felt herself suddenly fill with fear. But the distance passed as quickly as it came, and before she knew it he was grinning again at her.

"Come on, we'll miss the party!" Running after the rest of the group, Yuna laughed along with him as the gulls soared overhead.

He was back. He was home, and so was she.

Everything was so perfect. She hoped with all of her heart that it would remain that way.